From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Reply-To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Date: Fri, 02 Nov 2001 12:20:29 PST To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: [R-G] Demonstrators in Pakistan, Indonesia, Bangladesh protest bombing - AP Associated Press Friday, November 02, 2001 Demonstrators in Pakistan, Indonesia, Bangladesh protest bombing Mardan, Pakistan -- Urging the army to overthrow President Gen. Pervez Musharraf, thousands of Islamic militants marched in this northwestern city Friday to protest their government's support for the U.S. military campaign in Afghanistan. "Musharraf is a risk for Pakistan," Islamic cleric Qazi Hussain Ahmad told the crowd of 10,000, many of them ethnic Pashtuns, the largest ethnic group in neighbouring Afghanistan. Qazi said Musharraf -- an army general who seized power in 1999 -- should be deposed. "The sooner, the better," the cleric said. The protest in Mardan was the largest of several throughout Pakistan on Friday, the Muslim holy day and the usual time for pro-Taliban demonstrations against the United States. Smaller rallies were also held in the cities of Lahore, Karachi and Quetta. Musharraf has endorsed the U.S.-led military campaign, and allowed Americans to use Pakistani bases for what his government says is logistical support. The overwhelming majority of Pakistan's 145 million people are Muslim, and the anti-U.S. rallies have attracted relatively modest numbers considering the national population. However, Islamic militants have vowed to step up protests against Musharraf and pledged a countrywide civil disobedience campaign Nov. 9. At Mardan, protesters cheered when Qazi asked if they were ready to join a holy war against America. They raised their hands, volunteering. "Bush has waged war against Islam and we will defeat him with the power of faith," Qazi said. "It is the duty of every Muslim to support Taliban who are fighting against a mighty power." Qazi, president of Pakistan's main Islamic party Jamaat-e-Islami, insisted his call for a coup was not designed to cause a rift in Pakistan's military. "I have just asked the generals to protect the country's last disciplined and organized national institution by removing Musharraf, who wants to use it for appeasing America," Qazi said. Police and paramilitary troops stood guard by the hundreds at the rallies, keeping the protests in check. Meanwhile, anti-U.S. rallies attracted thousands of protesters Friday in Bangladesh and Indonesia. After a night of special prayers, nearly 2,000 Muslim men and children in flowing white robes and prayer caps held a protest rally outside Baitul Mokarram, the main mosque in downtown Dhaka, capital of Bangladesh. Another group of about 600 marched toward the U.S. Embassy, but were stopped by police outside Dhaka's diplomatic enclave and they dispersed peacefully. Chanting anti-American slogans and holding placards in support of the Afghan people and the Taliban militia, the protesters demanded an immediate stop to the bombing, saying it is "killing innocent civilians." Some burned paper and straw effigies of President George W. Bush. In Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim country, some 3,000 people protesting the U.S. attacks marched through the country's second-largest city, Surabya, after midday prayers, chanting "God is Great." That demonstration came a day after Indonesian President Megawati Sukarnoputri called on Washington to halt the military campaign during the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, which starts in mid-November. Bush rejected that notion in remarks Friday in a question-and-answer session at the White House. "The enemy won't rest during Ramadan and neither will we," Bush said. _________________________________________________ KOMINFORM P.O. Box 66 00841 Helsinki Phone +358-40-7177941 Fax +358-9-7591081 http://www.kominf.pp.fi General class struggle news: [EMAIL PROTECTED] subscribe mails to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Geopolitical news: [EMAIL PROTECTED] subscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] __________________________________________________
